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Post by Jack on Sept 10, 2021 16:20:54 GMT -6
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Post by Xentus on Sept 10, 2021 16:30:28 GMT -6
His mind wandered as his feet led him down a corridor. What kind of ancient place was this anyway? Why was it buried so deep? And what would he come to find? Part of him liked the idea that this was the resting place of some long forgotten king or emperor. A tomb in the abyss. And oftentimes, kings were laid to rest with jewels and gold. Would he be the one to raid a tomb? While part of him didn't jive with the idea of disturbing someone's resting place, he was a firm believer in that the dead didn't need their things from the material realm. Then again.. Plundering things without consideration might end up with him getting haunted. A chuckle escaped him, finding it more amusing than scary. "What does Varus think of ghosts?", the warden asked, looking over his shoulder to the gargoyle skulking after him. The familiar's hollow eyes looked up at him, staring blankly.
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Post by Xentus on Sept 10, 2021 16:35:39 GMT -6
It got the feeling there was something being asked here.. But it couldn't figure what. The warden was good at keeping conversation with himself. Varus had no input. It could.. Clack its beak at him sometimes, if it felt compelled to. But it was such a crude form of communication, one that didn't grant much transfer of information. Even Xentus felt this to be the case as he paused his stride for a moment. He could take some time to better teach the gargoyle his tongue and understand his word. This probably wasn't the ideal place to do so, as there was much he wanted to explore.. But at some point, he felt he could pause and try his best to give a little bit of schooling to the familiar. He often spoke with it, certainly it was grasping some of his words by now. The idea was set aside for later.
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Post by Xentus on Sept 10, 2021 16:42:21 GMT -6
"Xentus thinks spirits real. Usually intangible, but their realm and ours are none too far apart", the leopard continued on, musing on the thought aloud more than trying to make proper conversation. The corridor they traveled down grew narrower, and slightly more damp. A thin layer of liquid glazed the floor, presumably water, making the man's stride far more audible. The gentle splashing of his footsteps were the only noise he really heard here.. The dark path they journeyed down was eerily still and quiet. Nothing seemed to stir. And it felt like the rubble became lessened, more intact. The stonework was more distinctly brick-like, and carved with rough shapes that he could only assume were decorative. A doorway was chiseled into the wall on the left, giving something for the man to wandered in. "Careful now, Varus", the leopard murmured to his companion, slowly guiding the beam of his flashlight into the room.
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Post by Xentus on Sept 10, 2021 16:47:55 GMT -6
Inside was.. Well, he wasn't sure what he was looking at. There were long slots in the far wall of the room, and a few stone tables in the center. The leopard's brow furrowed, trying to discern what he was looking at here. Coffins. This was.. Some kind of small crypt? Now he knew some stories where kings were buried with false armies in case they rose from the dead or needed protection or something. But he'd never think that to be based on some reality. On the wall adjacent to the embedded tombs, there were various stone weapons. And he honestly couldn't tell if he was looking at replicas to commemorate the dead, or the actual tools of battle these people used. The leopard toed his way in, careful to not touch the stone sarcophaguses in the middle of the room. He felt it, a certain thrumming here. Quiet, but detectable.
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Post by Xentus on Sept 10, 2021 16:56:24 GMT -6
Oh he really hoped it wasn't coming from within one of these tombs. A grimace scrawled itself on the man's muzzle, fearing that if he wanted the magic which hummed, he'd need to desecrate someone's final resting place. Varus felt far less considerate about the tombs here in comparison to the warden. Nothing unnerved the gargoyle, and it sauntered about the crypt with little concern. It perused the scrawling on the stone sides of the coffins, finding them.. Unfortunately uninteresting. It didn't know of the ancients here. Which only added to the lack of care the familiar had for this place. Its hollow eyes perked up and watched as the warden was reaching out to touch a small stone box within a recess of the wall, nestled between crossed stone axes. Ominous. The thrumming was coming from there. And there was something the leopard felt uncanny about this arrangement. He hummed and withdrew his hand, considering the possibility of a trap.
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Post by Jack on Sept 10, 2021 17:58:18 GMT -6
It had settled back on its haunches and stared at the amber, though it wasn't sure what to make of it right now. Still though, when it looked to the side through a little hole in the wall, it buzzed and clicked, startled, and shoved a foot through the hole at the mammalian.
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Post by Xentus on Sept 10, 2021 18:23:09 GMT -6
There had to be a better way to go about this. Maybe trigger the potential trap with one of his tools? He'd rather one of those be broken than lose a few fingers or a hand. A short chuckle escaped the leopard as he took a moment to shuffle through his pack to find his pick.. And his ears perked up at the sound of buzzing, clicking, and scratching. Ah, did that strange little bug-thing follow him here too? Xentus looked up to see a foot reaching through a hold in the stonework, laughing at the sight. "Well then, how'd you get over there?", the leopard asked between chuckles. He clicked in return to the scrabbling foot, reaching out to let it grasp his hand. He wasn't nearly as wary about this thing now that he'd deemed it wasn't something that'd harm him. And behind him, a few more clicks sounded curiously. Varus looked at the foot in the wall, the other karzik bumbling behind the man, and the leopard himself. Curious.
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Post by Jack on Sept 10, 2021 18:32:13 GMT -6
In alarm, it tried to pull its foot back but then grasped it tentatively. That was odd, usually no one would do that kind of thing... It had come to rest in this place thanks to a cave in and had been there for quite some time. Buzzing, it pushed against the wall to no avail. Annoying, but perhaps it could be saved.
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Post by Xentus on Sept 10, 2021 18:43:02 GMT -6
Xentus peered over his shoulder, his laughter paused. And he blinked. And he came to the realization that this wasn't the karzik he'd befriended earlier, was it? Did he manage to stumble upon a nest for these? Did they have some kind of queen? Or perhaps! This was their ancient ruin! Eh, likely not, but the idea was funny anyway. In any event, the leopard.. Wasn't sure what to do with himself now. The clawed foot that had poked through the wall grabbed at him, then he heard some buzzing and shuffling. Er.. Was it stuck behind there, somehow? He'd helped one creature get itself free from precarious confines not too long ago, he wasn't opposed to doing it again. He held onto the foot now to keep it from scrabbling too much. "Hold on, little one", the man cooed soothingly to the hole in the wall, then began chipping at the stonework with his pick. A little awkward to do one handedly, but he was determined!
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Post by Jack on Sept 10, 2021 18:52:06 GMT -6
Still annoyed it had gotten stuck in a cave in, the Karzik realized the person was somehow digging away at the wall on their side. Oh perfect! Clicking happily, it pushed against the wall a few more times as the hole became bigger and bigger, until it finally managed to twist and poke its head through too.
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Post by Xentus on Sept 10, 2021 19:17:21 GMT -6
While he worked, ideas flowed through his mind. The creatures of the underground revering him as some kind of savior with all this aid he'd given them.. Now that would be a crowning achievement. He laughed silently to himself while he mused on the thought while chipping away at the wall. And soon enough, a freaky, red-eyed head poked through. A face which he.. Didn't exactly think cute, but it had its charms. To someone. "Why hello there", the man cooed gently, trying to make sure the creature stayed calm, "A little stuck, huh?" Xentus paused his digging to tentatively pat the creature's head, then carried on until the hole was big enough for him to reach into. "No biting now..", he warned the thing, giving it a firm look before dropping his pick to reach in with both hands to wiggle the karzik free from the predicament it'd found itself in.
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Post by Jack on Sept 10, 2021 19:20:03 GMT -6
Beaming at the man for helping it, the Karzik happily accepted the head pats and then wriggled as best as it could. Both the man's hands were on it now, and it helped to move and wiggle around until it popped free of the wall. Surprised it had worked, it shook its head and then buzzed its wings before nuzzling up to the man and then went after the gargoyle. New friends!
[Congratulations, you've tamed the Karzik!]
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Post by Xentus on Sept 10, 2021 19:38:40 GMT -6
He really wanted to do some research on these curious bug-like creatures. They were.. Oddly friendly? Or could be. That kind of temperament was not one he'd come to expect from insectoids. Not many bugs were regarded as 'cuddly' or 'affectionate'. Heck, few were even cute. So the karzik struck him as odd. He wondered if they did have some kind of colony lifestyle.. Xentus watched as the excited little bug went over to greet Varus and the similar looking bug. The gargoyle was.. Less than thrilled to see yet another rival for the attention he got from the warden. But it clacked its beak in greeting, knowing that it was inherently better than the bug of drake. "We're making a lot of friends, aren't we Varus?", the man chimed, watching the two familiars interact. He could tell the gargoyle wasn't exactly delighted at the presence of more company, but seemed to tolerate it well enough for now.
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Post by Xentus on Sept 10, 2021 19:47:45 GMT -6
With that sudden happening resolved, where was he.. Right. There was magic here, and he was going to get his claws on it. With a pick axe. The leopard picked up the tool and slowly moved it into the space beneath the crossed axes. He fully expected the stone weapons to suddenly spring to action and snap his tool in twain. He held his breath and tapped down on the stone box.. The axes creaked slightly, giving a twitch as something grinded unseen. Xentus exhaled slowly, relieved. Seemed like whatever mechanism was there wasn't designed to last for ages. The lid of the stone box was pried off and it clinked onto the ground, pieces chipping off. And within the box, the thrumming seemed to grow, the crystal knowing it was in new hands now. Xentus quickly reached in and clutched all that he felt, like a kid grabbing a handful of candy.
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